Collapsed lung slows down fitness instructorRaffles to help Patti Smith with medical expenses

January 15, 2009|JUDY BRADFORD Tribune Correspondent

SOUTH BEND We never know when something in our world might suddenly collapse. For fitness instructor Patti Smith, it was her left lung, and it gave way as she was teaching a dance called the "electric slide" to a group of 30 older adults. "I coughed, and I suddenly felt this pressure in the front and back of my chest. It was almost like I was in a vice," Smith said. "I was totally unable to take a deep breath.'' She worked through the pain and discomfort until the end of the class. She then told one of the class members -- a retired nurse -- that she didn't feel very well. Before she knew it, paramedics were on the scene and transporting her to Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center. That all happened on Dec. 16, probably as the result of an extended bout with bronchitis. She spent the next four days in the hospital with a tube surgically placed in her chest to draw off excess air and fluid. On Dec. 23, during a medical checkup, she learned that her lung had collapsed again -- the pain probably masked by medications. She was then hospitalized for two more days, and released Dec. 25. On the positive side, Patti has discovered how many people love her -- and how quickly and thoroughly a community can respond to need. Patti is self-employed and could not afford medical insurance. Almost as soon as she went to the hospital, raffle tickets were being sold at the O'Brien Fitness Center to help pay her medical bills, which could reach $20,000. Patti has been a fitness instructor in the area for 28 years, even teaching paramedics how to stay fit. One of the paramedics who responded to her emergency was a former student, firefighter John Comeau. "I kept saying 'I can't go to the hospital, I don't have insurance.' He just said 'Patti, you're going.' " She says she is "humbled" by the raffle, and other donations that have come in. She was also amazed at the number of people who visited her, and the get-well cards she received. She's back in the classroom, instructing again, but only verbally. She can tell class members what to do and correct them through personal contact, but she can't do any physical exercise herself until she's cleared, hopefully later this month. Patti might take it easy from now on, when she feels a cold coming on. And since her hospitalization, she's also applied for medical insurance through the Healthy Indiana Plan, for Hoosiers who have no access to insurance through an employer. Meanwhile, raffle tickets are still being sold through today. Donations will be received anytime at the O'Brien Fitness Center, 321 E. Walter St., South Bend 46614. Tickets are $5 each and there will be various prizes.